The Golden State Valkyries’ 80-66 win against the Minnesota Lynx was a big night for Natalie Nakase’s team. It marked the first time in the team’s existence that it beat Minnesota. Although the Lynx were without Courtney Williams, the Valkyries made a statement by beating the number-one team and holding the Lynx to a season-low in points. They could be a serious threat in the postseason.
It was also a big game for Janelle Salaün. She put up 12 points off the bench, shooting 5-11 from the field and 2-5 from three, and set a new WNBA record for points scored off the bench in a single season.
With seven games still left in the season, Salaün has already scored 470 points. The next-closest player is her teammate Tiffany Hayes with 304 points. The Sixth Player of the Year award has been Salaün’s to lose for most of the season. With that new record, she further shut out any competition.
There wasn’t much competition to begin with
After the first few games of the season, Chennedy Carter seemed like the obvious choice for Sixth Player of the Year. When the Las Vegas Aces waived her, the race narrowed down to Salaün and Sophie Cunningham, who had good scoring stretches in June and July.
However, Cunningham has struggled in August, often scoring just two or three points and even going scoreless in a tough loss to the Dallas Wings. That drop-off quickly took her out of contention, especially considering how good Salaün has been.
Salaün has had a great month so far. She only scored in single digits twice and cracked the 20-point mark in two games. She’s doing it efficiently, too, shooting 46.5% from the field and 37.5% from deep.
Salaün does more than just score, though. She also ranks second in total rebounds off the bench behind Washington Mystics rookie Lauren Betts and fifth in steals.
Their bench is a big reason for the Valkyries’ success
The Valkyries have the second-best record in the WNBA despite not having a clear-cut MVP-level player. Gabby Williams has been great, but she’s not necessarily the kind of unstoppable go-to scorer teams like Las Vegas and Minnesota have.
However, the Valkyries have the best depth in the league. There’s little to no drop-off when Nakase goes to her bench, and the Valkyries’ reserves regularly outplay other second units. They average the most points off the bench with 35.9. The Connecticut Sun rank second with 29.1.
Salaün is the driving force behind that bench success, but Tiffany Hayes, Kaitlyn Chen, and Kaila Charles also contribute plenty.
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